America's Online Pursuits: The changing picture of who's online and what they do (22 Dec 2003)
A broad analysis of over three years’ worth of Pew Internet Project data illustrates shifting trends in Internet use by Americans. Online activity has consistently grown over the course of our research. Internet users discover more things to do online as they gain experience and as new applications become available. This momentum often fuels increasing reliance on the Internet in everyday life and higher expectations about the way the Internet can be used in matters both mundane and mighty. Despite this growth in activity, the growth of the online population itself has slowed. There was almost no growth over the course of 2002 and there has been only a small uptick in recent months to leave the size of the online U.S. adult population at 63% of all those 18 and over. More than three-quarters of those between the ages of 12 and 17 use the Internet.Article URL: http://www.pewinternet.org/reports/toc.asp?Report=106